An idea that I have explored often on this blog has been the difference between people who reach their goals and those who do not. Almost everybody I know has at some point or another embarked on a lifting or dieting regimen aimed at transforming their body into something that they have always hoped for. In my experience it always starts off with a couple days, maybe even a couple weeks of intense motivation. Going to the gym and busting ass, sticking to the diet and watching what they eat. But it always seems to fail in the end. Why is that? Why is it that some people can sustain their level of motivation over a long period of time? So often I am asked how I stay motivated to go in to the gym day in and day out and work out. The answer to this question can be applied to any aspect of your life.
See something that I even fell victim to was thinking that motivation and inspiration are things that are magically bestowed upon a lucky few. That the people that study for hours on end, or the people that jump on the treadmill for 45 minutes after a 2 hour workout just have some magic fairy sprinkling motivational dust on their heads when they wake up every morning. Well thinking that way is a fucking cop-out, an easy way to dismiss yourself of any accountability and quite frankly be a fucking pussy. The turning point for me was when I internalized the fact that motivation and inspiration is like taking a shower, it’s recommended daily. Sure, when I first started seeing some results from hitting the gym I got super motivated for a couple months, I couldn’t wait to hit the weights. I would look forward to it all day. But what happened after a while was that same fire would die down. I would get lazy and would want to just stay home and watch t.v. I love lifting and eating clean but there are times where I just want to pound some in-n-out and watch family guy till the cows come home. The key to staying motivated is understanding that your own motivation has to be manufactured on a daily basis. You yourself have to eagerly search for inspiration. Remind yourself why you started your journey towards bettering yourself.
There are numerous ways to do this so I am going to highlight the few that have worked for me over the past few years. One of the most common and often times most powerful sources of inspiration is the feeling of admiration or slight envy I would feel towards somebody that was closer to their goals than I was to mine. Feeling envious is a perfectly normal thing; in fact it is in my opinion the sincerest form of esteem and flattery. The problem is when people manifest that envy towards just being a total cunt. They talk shit or attempt to dismiss the person’s hard work by attributing his accomplishments to external forces. The key is to harness that emotion into yourself, in other words use that feeling of admiration towards working harder towards your goals. Maybe add a couple extra sets to a workout or tweak your diet, whatever it is the important thing is to use those feelings as fuel to help keep you moving towards your goals. The tough part is being able to channel it towards constructive things, because at times the feelings can be a bit overwhelming. You are not seeing gains soon enough or you’re working towards something real hard and it seems like you’re getting nowhere fast. You just have to remain focused on YOURSELF and be concerned with where YOU’RE going. Do not allow those feelings of admiration to be skewed into resentment and become destructive, USE them to fuel your ass to work harder than you ever have before.
In conclusion you have to figure out what motivates/inspires you and you have to perpetually bathe yourself in that shit. As often as humanly possible. Be the powerful mother fucker you were intended to be. Happy Liftin’
I’ll end with Big Kaz chillin’ in a Kilt.
